Pathfinder Online Kickstarter Project

In life there is nothing quite so satisfying as smashing goblin skulls, stabbing the toes of giants, being swallowed by dragons and cutting your way out (gruesome, isn’t it?), challenging evil necromancers (as opposed to the “good” necromancers), and saving the world one quest at a time. What if there was an immersive experience, a method of interactive storytelling that allowed you as a player to not only participate in the above activities with righteous abandon but would actually let your character, that you create and customize, alter the world it inhabits? What if there was such a thing as a fantasy sandbox MMO? That is precisely what Paizo and Goblinworks are working on: Pathfinder Online.

Folks in the pen & paper world of role-playing games know that Paizo has been a major force in new ways of game development. A few years ago, Paizo conducted the largest open playtest of a role-playing game in history. With thousands of people downloading the rules for free, playing, and offering suggestions, Paizo was able to release their award winning Pathfinder RPG and become the preeminent player in fantasy role-playing games. Every major release since the Pathfinder Core Rule Book has been playtested by the public. This means that the players’ perspectives and feedback play a crucial role in the development of the Pathfinder line.

This approach to pen & paper game development has given Paizo thousands of loyal fans, which in turn have helped them launch a new Kickstarter project based on Pathfinder. In collaboration with Goblinworks out of Redmond, Washington, Paizo is once again embarking on a new way to immerse players into the art of interactive storytelling. In the Pathfinder Online MMO, players are presented with what is called a “sandbox” type MMO. Many will be familiar with other sandbox games like Minecraft, but for those who aren’t familiar with the concept, simply put: sandbox games allow players to not only affect the game world of all players around them; it allows players to build the world itself. Player characters can build castles, become influential members of city governments, build kingdoms, and so on. You get to really inhabit the Pathfinder world.

In Kickstarter fashion, Pathfinder Online offers a variety of perks for pledging support, and they’ve just posted some new ones. Folks who come in at the Loremaster level ($75 and up) will receive a PDF copy of the new Emerald Spire Superdungeon featuring source material about the Emerald Spire and at least 4 8-page dungeon levels. Pledging at the Crowdforger Pioneer level ($100) and up will now get you Pathfinder Battles Miniatures at no additional cost. But the fun and prizes don’t stop there. The closer they move to the $1M goal, the more the dungeon expands and the more miniatures will be added. Click on the link above to check out all the Pathfinder goodness you can snag while supporting a great company dedicated to giving their fans, and customers, the best gaming experience possible.